Overview of ESA communication activities in 2009 relevant to the media

ESA's Herschel set to launch with Planck in April 2009

5 January 2009

ESA PR 01-2009. Press conferences, exhibitions, launches, political events… the list of the main communications activities that ESA will be involved in is taking shape. Pencil these dates into your diaries as of now.

January

14
ESA Director General Jean-Jacques Dordain meets the Press at ESA headquarters in Paris, France, to give a status report on ongoing activities and an overview of upcoming events.

15-16
Opening event of the International Year of Astronomy, UNESCO, Paris.

February

tbc
Astronaut selection 'media day' at ESA/EAC, Cologne, Germany.

March

tbd
Start of 'Mars500' first isolation campaign (Moscow, Russia).

02-08
19th Italian Week of Scientific and Technological Culture, open day at ESA/ESRIN, Frascati, Italy.

tbc
Maiden flight of ESA’s new small launcher Vega, from the Guiana Space Centre (CSG), Kourou.

tbc
Start of 'Mars500' 520-day isolation campaign (Moscow, Russia).

Dates of certain events, in particular launches, depend on various factors such as the readiness of the spacecraft and/or the launcher. In the calendar of activities they remain tabled as 'to be determined' (tbd) or 'to be confirmed' (tbc). Definite dates are confirmed by Arianespace (for Ariane launches), Starsem (for Soyuz launches), Eurockot (for Rockot launches) and NASA (for Space Shuttle launches).